The brain "learns" and "remembers" by a process that strengthens connections among neurons. These connections are called "synapses". Kenneth Kosik and others at the University of California Santa Barbara have discovered the chemical process that
strengthens the synapses. The synapsis is "guarded" by an apparatus of proteins
that "silences" it. When the synapsis needs to be strengthened, first a signal
deteriorates the silencing compound so that the synapsis is no longer
silenced, and then the RNA is free to synthesize a new protein.

A team of Japanese and USA scientists have found out that the human genome contains genes of a virus. The virus infected hominids 40 million years ago, and its genes have been passed down ever since (New York Times)

Scottish biologist Klaus Zuberbuhler is trying to decipher the language of monkeys (New York Times)

October 2009

Marc Pagel at the University of Reading has proposed a theory that the oldest words in each language are those that have been used the most: 'I', 'we', 'who' and the numbers '1', '2' and '3'.

British chemist John Sutherland at the University of Manchester has shown how to synthesize a nucleotide from the elements of prebiotic Earth. If he is right phosphate played a critical role as much as carbon.